I’ve heard awful things about Horizon as well. From what I understand they are a big factory farm that skirts by the minimum USDA organic standards (and probably less). They spend a lot of money on lawyers and lobbyists to keep them clean. If you are deadset on organic, the only organic brand I recommend is Organic Valley. Organic Valley buys their mil from a co-op of small dairy farmers. Their milk tastes better and is better for you. If you are open to brands that are not officially USDA certified but that follow organic standards I highly recommend Hartzler’s and Snowville Creamery. As you may know, Hartzler’s is a small family farm in the Wooster area and Snowville Creamery is a small farm out of southern Ohio. Snowville is my favorite and what I always buy. It is readily available at Heinen’s. By the way, if you like egg nog, you HAVE TO try Hartzler’s next Christmas time. It is the best ever.

Dave

First, thank you for reading, much appreciated! And thanks for taking the time to share your comments. The second part of your comment first. I can’t speak for them, but have you tried sharing this with your local store? I know Miles carries some items that I wish Heinen’s did, and one day at the store one of the workers told me they would try to get it for me, but I never took him up on it. But I do know that they now carry Bell & Evans and the one guy in the meat dept told me it’s because many customers were asking (like me!). So it’s good to share your thoughts and concerns, you never know!

As for the first part of your comment, I believe in 100% transparency, always have. Anytime something is sponsored or if I’ve been out and treated to a dish, I say so. Perhaps you missed the post, but awhile back I did say that Heinen’s is one of my advertisers and they are sponsoring content (from chef recipes, to Q&As, some entertaining posts as well as me reviewing some of their items). This isn’t a secret and I’ve been very honest from the beginning about the relationship. I’ve also been honest, with both my readers and Heinen’s, that just because you’re an advertiser, doesn’t mean I will not be truthful in my thoughts. I will always share my honest feedback. Always. I have had a few people e-mail me and say they wish I didn’t accept advertisers, and while I don’t necessarily feel the need to justify all that I do, I will say that I don’t think there’s anything wrong with advertisers on CF. I am very select about who I work with and have turned down companies because they aren’t local or are chains. And further, much of this dining out is on our dime. Having advertisers helps offset some of the cost and allows me to go to more places and share more with you. Plus, I now have 1 13-month-old, and she’s expensive! (i’m kidding, sorta :) So, I hope that helps address some of your concerns. But rest assured, I do state in the post if something is sponsored, it does not affect my opinion one bit even if it weren’t, and I did acknowledge this relationship at the beginning.

By the way, what did you mean about Horizon? I but a lot of Horizon products and that has my interest. I’m actually trying to buy much more organic these days. What are some of your other favorite items?

Thank you for posting this – I love the new Heinen’s artisnal bread! I used to buy the La Brea bread out of necessity but hated that it full of lots ingredients I couldn’t pronounce – I’m sure mostly preservatives since it was shipped. Unless Heinens is holding back on their ingredients list (which I highly doubt); their bread is “cleaner” and you can tell. I do agree with Emil in that I wish Heinen’s provided more information on their private labels.